Ramadan

On July 20, the chief and religious leader of Meskine saw the crescent moon in the night sky and he proclaimed the beginning of the month of Ramadan. To Christians and much of the Western world, this means little. But to our Muslim neighbors, it means that the month of fasting and abstinence from worldly pleasures has begun. As one of the Five Pillars of Islam, the fasting month of Ramadan is considered the highest form of worship. During this month, Muslims will attempt to suppress their earthly desires as an act of spiritual piety in order to atone for their sins (make right with God).  By not eating or drinking during the day (the people here, won’t even swallow their saliva!), Muslims believe their sins are scorched away sins like the sun burns the ground.  Their stomachs ache with hunger in an attempt to please God and gain rewards.

While Christians value fasting as a way to intensify our prayers, we do not do it so that we may persuade God , to ensure our wrongs are forgiven, or to gain rewards. God does not desire religious duty. Christ desires our heart. So much so that he gave his life as an atonement for our sins. All we have to do is believe and assurance of salvation is ours. We are free from doubt, the unknown, and retribution. This is a freedom our Muslim friends do not know.

This Ramadan, please join the millions of Christians around the world in praying for our Muslim friends or as we call them in Meskine, “our cousins.”  By setting aside these 30 (or 20 something- if you start now) for prayer, we will be better able to relate to our Muslim cousins as they are also praying. Pray specifically for greater breakthroughs for the Gospel among Muslims, an increased commitment to prayer by Christians, and for more missionaries to work among Muslims. To help you each day, there is a free prayer guide (there is even one for kids). Each day highlights a different people group or region- with information, statics, and ways to pray.  And just in case you think your Muslim cousins only live in countries with names you cannot pronounce, tomorrow’s location is Nashville, Tennessee!

But before we can plead for our cousins, we must be intentional about making our relationship right with our cousins. On the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said that before we come to the altar we must go and reconcile ourselves with our brothers and sisters. I encourage you to sign the Radical Love Pledge:

Challenging followers of Christ to love Muslims as He does.

Christian relationships with Muslims have often been characterized by conflict, fear and lack of love. This is the opposite of the way Jesus taught his people to live. As his followers, we are promised a love that casts out fear. We are commanded to love neighbor and even enemy. Therefore we resolve to imitate and obey Jesus by making the following pledge:

• I will repent of any hateful feelings toward Muslims and pursue love.
• I will pray for Muslims that God will bless them and that they will experience His peace.
• I will do at least one act of kindness for a Muslim in this next year.
• I will respectfully share the good news about Christ.
• I will not spread negative stereotypes about Muslims but will season all my words with grace.